LESSON SEVEN: Editing to Eliminate Fragments
LESSON DESCRIPTION
This lesson focuses on editing to eliminate sentence fragments in writing. The objective of this lesson is to edit to eliminate sentence fragments in writing. Students identify sentence fragments in a sample paragraph and rewrite the paragraph, eliminating the fragments.
GRADE-LEVEL EXPECTATIONS
W2F When composing text, use
§ cohesive devices including
o transitions
o repetition
o parallelism
§ editing to eliminate fragments
§ the rhetorical device of
o repetition for effect
o parallelism
LESSON MATERIALS
o None
§ Supplies:
o Overhead
§ Handouts provided
o Fragments worksheet (formative assessment)
§ Words to Know
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o evaluate |
o author's purpose |
o analyze |
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o connotation |
o compare |
o contrast |
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o letter |
o points of view |
o workplace communication |
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o nonfiction |
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Students will identify sentence fragments in the sample paragraph on the worksheet and rewrite the paragraph, eliminating the fragments.
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Idea |
The teacher may prepare in advance a paragraph containing several sentence fragments. Students will need copies of the fragment worksheet for the formative assessment. |
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Technology Connections |
The teacher may use an overhead, Notepad, SmartBoard, etc., for this lesson. |
LEARNING ACTIVITIES
1. Review the definition of (sentence) fragment with students. Lead students in discussing problems with written communication that contains fragments.
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Questions for Students |
What is a (sentence) fragment? Have you ever encountered fragments while reading something (such as a note or letter from someone)? What effect did those have on your ability to read and understand that? |
2. Write a short paragraph containing sentence fragments on the board or overhead. Students identify fragments and offer suggestions on how to correct those. The teacher then rewrites the paragraph with the fragments eliminated and uses the think-aloud strategy to compare the readability of the two versions of the paragraph.
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Questions for Students |
What/where are the (sentence) fragments in this paragraph? How would you correct each fragment to make the paragraph make sense? How does the revised paragraph compare to the original paragraph? |
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Strategy
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Note: A sentence fragment may be corrected by tying it to a sentence/thought that comes before or after it or by simply adding to the fragment as necessary to make it a complete thought. There is often more than one way to edit to eliminate or correct a particular fragment. Many factors affect the method a writer chooses to correct a fragment. Most grammar/language textbooks contain examples of sentence fragments and exercises appropriate for further practice, if necessary. |
3. Students complete a fragments worksheet handout that contains a short paragraph with fragments. Students rewrite the paragraph, correcting those fragments.
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Strategy
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Each student will need one copy of the fragment worksheet. Note: Although editing to eliminate fragments is taught and assessed in this lesson and unit, it is a skill that requires ongoing practice. |